


Paws

by AbelQuartz



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst, Corrupted Gems, F/M, Friendship, Frustration, Heartbeats, Hugs, I Love You, Short, Short One Shot, Speech Disorders, Teen Romance, Teenagers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-08
Updated: 2019-10-08
Packaged: 2020-11-27 06:42:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,240
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20944031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AbelQuartz/pseuds/AbelQuartz
Summary: Connie goes to visit Steven. She's his only visitor now. It shouldn't be like this.





	Paws

**Author's Note:**

> Holy cow, I completely forgot to post this here from Tumblr. Well, with all this corrupted!Steven stuff going around, have some fluff-angst. Fluffgst. It's short and sweet.

_It had only been a little scratch. It wasn’t fair. It shouldn’t have ended up like this._

Despite the litany of frustrations running through her head, Connie marched on alone. Pearl had warned her about going out alone, but for now, the only dangers were the brambles and pebbles. Peaceful winds blew through the valley en route to the fountain. By this point, Connie had walked the path enough times to know the way by heart.

Peridot’s generator was doing more than enough to turn the hovel into a home. Rains rarely fell here, but the shack was covered nonetheless. Just like the beach house, the Crystal Gems had helped to build it into the circular walls, a square little house with a roof slanting down in front of the entrance. Connie opened the door and looked for Steven.

There was the humming generator, the television and the console, the refrigerator, and the outlet with various small chargers plugged in. The mattress looked more torn up than usual; Steven might be having nightmares again. Shredded shirts and underwear hung out of the hamper on the far side. Greg was running low, and Connie’s parents had to step in and offer to buy at least clean white shirts for the boy. Beyond the star-shaped archway, beyond the gate leading into the fountain, Connie could hear splashing.

She stepped through, leaving her backpack on the ground. The teenager paused, then turned back and unzipped it, pulling out the clean shirt and sweatpants. The path to the water was littered with scraps that Steven must have torn off on his way there. It was one of those days, it seemed.

When Connie came to the edge with the clothing, she sat down and took her sandals off, then slipped her feet into the water. She had come with shorts on already, prepared to possibly help her friend out of the drink. The water was still for now. Connie counted down in her head until she saw a bubble rise.

The boy burst forth. Steven’s mouth opened in a gasp, revealing the serrations deep inside his mouth, the new rows of teeth behind the tusks up front. One swollen eye blinked, then focused on Connie, and the boy’s whole demeanor changed. Even through corruption, there were still those stars in his eyes.

“Con-nie!”

Steven bounded forwards, sloshing his way to the rim. His bare arms showed the extent of the damage, where green circles had blotched his skin. Coronas of corruption had spread over his left shoulder and onto his chest, with hornlike protrusions emerging near his collarbone. The mineral spires kept mostly to his spine and shoulders, thankfully, but there was one more on his right elbow and a massive spike above his right eye. Steven’s forehead was studded with smaller points, like a crown of thorns.

He climbed out of the pool on all fours. With his legs swollen and bent like an animal’s, it was easier for him most of the time to bend forwards on what was left of his hands. The remains of his jeans were soaked through, trailing bits of fabric that dripped on the stone as he padded towards Connie with his stubbly little tail wagging behind him.

Connie didn’t mind the animalism, but she was frightened by how well Steven had adapted to it. He seemed happy with his body, which she was glad for. Changing back was their priority, though, and the more that he got used to this form the harder it would be to come back. Still, Connie couldn’t help but smile herself as her friend sat down.

“Con… Connie! You - yngggh - wha’sup?” Steven growled.

“Just came by with some clothes!” Connie said. “And to say hi. Nothing new from the Gems, but they’re still working. Garnet’s waiting back at the warp pad.”

“Not - ccccoming?”

“No, she… She’s just here to help me warp.”

Steven pouted as much as his mouth would allow. The excess teeth and the general bone growth had malformed his jaw, and speaking was a difficult affair. They had done some therapy and some practice, and Steven could form sentences with big vowel sounds, but there was always hardship. The disconnect between mind and mouth was awful. Connie couldn’t imagine how Steven felt. He tried his best to keep chipper, though, and he raised a thick-clawed hand up to his friend.

“D-do you wan’to go on a lit’l hai - haike?” he asked.

He wiped his mouth on his arm where drool had slid out. Embarrassed by his impediment, the boy turned guiltily, attempting to cross his legs like a human again. Connie could see how painful it was to move his body, and how much he wanted to make it normal again. She sighed softly, patting Steven on the knee.

“I’d like that very much, Steven,” she said. “Why don’t you dry off, and I can help you change clothes, okay?”

“M-mnkay.”

Steven didn’t move. Connie’s smile faltered, and she studied the boy’s darting eyes, the way that he was opening and closing his mouth. There was something he was trying to say, something with his tongue pressing upwards, pushing against the curvature of his teeth.

“Con-nie?”

“Steven, what’s wrong?”

“I… I… lr - luhs - llrrrr…”

His mouth heaved with each motion, and the more the word became mispronounced the more Steven was rocking. Connie watched, then reddened as she realized what he was trying to tell her. The words were the most important thing he could say, and Connie’s heart fell. He couldn’t get the words out. Until they found the Diamonds and fixed earth, no amount of healing in the fountain could allow Steven to say that he loved anyone ever again. The boy started to tremble as the seconds ticked by.

Connie reached forwards. She took the corrupted teenager’s hand and he stopped instantly. Her thumbs pressed into the calluses of his palms, massaging upwards into the rounded claws on the end of each finger. Steven’s growls turned into gentle breaths as she moved his paw to rest against her chest.

They could both feel the heartbeat. Louder than the burbling of the fountain, louder than the leaves rustling in the foothills, louder than the birds that sang to each other in the meadows beyond, they could feel it.

Connie reached out with her right hand, and held it against Steven’s chest. His skin was still damp from the water, but warmer than anything. Gently, Steven brought up one massive hand and placed it on top of the girl’s.

_Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum._

Two human hearts beat together. Connie closed her eyes and let the balance come back to her body. Steven needed a reminder that he was human underneath it all, or at least human enough. No amount of corruption and frustration could take that away from him. In time, they would be together again.

As Connie rested, Steven stared at her friend, wondering if she knew how much his cheeks were burning underneath the green circles. He watched her, feeling her hands around him, those tiny human fingers pressed up against his chest. Steven’s paw tightened carefully as he thought the words, one at a time, one-two-three. But he didn’t need to say them. The boy breathed steadily and audibly through his tusks. Connie loved him through everything, too. One day, he would say it, with words as clear and as bright as the water itself.


End file.
